Would she really be able to pull off the role of Amanda in the Noel Coward 1929 classis? How would she cope with the accent? Kim Cattrall proves her worth and is hot stuff, say the critics.

At the helm of Richard Eyre's revival of Private Lives, Kim Cattrall has gained vast respect from critics. ‘Cattrall is a vision to behold, at ease in her body, and miraculously combining vulnerability with sharp wit,' writes Charles Spencer in the Daily Telegraph.

Her co-star, Matthew Macfadyen from BBC1's Spooks, plays her ex-husband. ‘Escaping entirely from the highly strung, slightly queeny stock portrayal of Elyot, Macfadyen is all the funnier for being so meatily masculine and solid a presence, with an accent that seems to mock its own port-wine plumminess,' writes Paul Taylor in the Independent.

West End favourite Simon Paisley Day, who stunned audiences in Entertaining Mr Sloane at Trafalgar Studios last year, doesn't disappoint once again. ‘There is a masterly performance by Simon Paisley Day as Amanda’s blusterin new husband Victor,' writes Paul Callan in the Daily Express.

Lisa Dillon, as Macfadyen's ex-wife, also receives her share of promising comments. ‘But this pinched, slightly hunched pretty blonde woman is not Kim, but Lisa Dillon, superbly well cast as Elyot Chase's second wife, Sybil,' beams Michael Coveney on What's on Stage.

Private Lives runs until 1st May at the Vaudeville Theatre.